Packing material



3, 1939- D. SMBRIGHAM El AL V 68,317 PAbKING MATERIAL Filed Nov. 20, 1935 s sheets-sheet 2 IIIIIIIII/ big I fiw vey 8, 1939- D. s. BRIGHAM El AL 2,168,317

PACKING MATERIAL Filed Nov. 20, 1955 s Sheets-Sheet 3 DWIGHT 5. BEIGHAM WALTER, J." SGHWE/ETFEGEE 'atented Aug. 1939 UNITED STATE mint 8. Brisham.

a national States meme assignments, to, The Canal National Bank-of Portlanddortland, Maine, as trustee,

banking associatio 'Walter N. L, assignors, by Y n of the United Application November 20, 19:5, Serial No. 50,554.

'1 Claims.

This invention relates to devices for supporting fragile articles so that they may be safely handled and shipped, and although not exclusively limited to the packing of eggs, is particularly adapted for such use.

Eggs are usually packed layer on layer in cases or crates of standard dimension, each layer being supported by a sheet known as a flat and each egg in each layer being separated from the remaining eggs in said layer by vertical division strips known as fillers or cell cases".

Protective devices are usually provided at the bottom and/ or top of the egg case for. ,cushioning the assembly against shock. Inthe early art, these were merely lining sheets of straw, excelsior, or the like. As the art developed, cardboard, strawboard, molded pulp, and kindred material was substituted for the straw or excelsior sheets and fabricated into a pad having on its lower face a plurality of pre-formed downwardly extendin cushioning projections, as ribs, posts, feet, rings or the like adapted to space the pad from the bottom wall of the egg case and having on its upper face a plurality of preformed upwardly extending projections, as rings, hollow cones, or like holders adapted to receive and grip the individual eggs inserted therein. r

Our invention contemplates an improved pack ing device usefuleither as an ordinary flat or as a combination flat and lining pad. Embodiments containing the principles involved are illustrated in the accompanying drawings wherein? Fig. 1 is a top plan view of our device showing the same constructed as a combination flat and lining pad. I

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary bottom plan view thereof.

Figs. 3, 4 and 5 are sections on the lines 33, 4-4, and 5-5 respectively of 1.

i Fig. 6 is a fragmentary top plan view of our device showing the same constructed as an ordi-' nary fiat.

Fig. '7 is a section on the line 1-1 of Fig. 6,

and 3 Fig. 8 is a fragmentary vertical section through a standard egg case showing the device of Figs. 1 to 5 inclusive used as a combination flat andlining pad for the top and bottom layers of eggs and the device of Figs. 6 and 7 used as an ordinary flat for the intermediate layers.

In our present invention, we arrange every alternate diagonal row of. the individual egg supports of the flat of the Chaplin Patent No. 1,987,525 at right angles to the diagonal rows which are not re arranged and thus produce increase in height, those portions of the sheet through the sheet groups of four supports wherein two opposite supports have their major axis disposed in another diagonal direction of the sheet and at right angles to said first named pair. 5

As a result of this arrangement the space enclosed by each group'of' four supports is an unobstructed area which is symmetrical with all four supports of the group, of in other words, the four supports occupy the four comers of a square which has for its center the center of the central space enclosed by the four supports. Such central space may be converted into a cushioning post or foot by depressing the same downwardly, thus adapting our device for use as a combination flat and lining pad.

Or the spaces may not be depressed to form the cushioning feet, in which event our device wouldbe used as anordinary flat.

Whether used as an ordinary flat or as a combination flat and pad, and regaidless of whether the downwardly extending cushioning feet are 'or are not present, the sheet may be readily nested with other similar sheets for shipping and storage purposes without the necessity of first arranging all of the sheets with their individual egg supports all pointing in the same diagonal direction, as was necessary with the patented Chaplin flat aforesaid.

Where our device is used as a combination flat and lining pad, the individual egg-supports are raised slightly higher above the plane 'of the sheet than those shown in the,patented Chaplin flat aforesaid. In order to compensate for this slight which separate the individual egg supports from one another transversely and longitudinally of the sheet and which themselves constitute supports for the lower edge of the flller are raised a distance corresponding to the increase in height 40 of the egg supports.

This increase in height of both the egg supports and the filler supports enables us to termnate the downwardly extending cushioning feet or posts at the planeof the sheet rather than having them extend below the plane of thesheet, with consequent tendency for the sheet to buckle under load, as heretofore in the art.

We have indicated at ill a sheetf material which is preferably although not necessarily made v of molded pulp. When made of molded pulp, it is formed by the well known pulp sucking process. Distributed symmetrically over the upper .face of such sheet is a plurality of spaced rows of individual egg supports", These may have the 5s of individual egg supports providing thirty-six supports in all distributed over the face of the sheet, there are five spaced diagonal rows, marked A, of supports all having their individual egg supports disposed with their major axis pointing in the same diagonal direction, and five spaced diagonal rows, marked B, of supports'intervening between the first named set of rows A and all having their individual egg supports pointing in the same diagonal direction but at right angles to the direction in which the first named set is disposed; Thus the several sheets may be nested for purposes of shipment or storage, without the necessity of first arranging the individual sheets withthe egg supports all pointing in the same diagonal direction.

The egg supports themselves are distributed over the face of the sheet in groups of four, each group consisting of two opposite supports furnished by two adjacent rows A and two opposite supports furnished by two intervening rows B, the four supports of the group thus enclosing a common central area l2, or in other words, the four supports occupy the four corners of a square having the enclosed space l2 as a center.

By depressing these central spacesl! a substantial distance downwardly (Figs. 1 to 5) to form hollow supporting cushions or posts l3 having closed fiat bottoms l4, the fiat may be con- I verted into a combination fiat and lining pad.

The spaces or areas l2 at the four margins of the sheet are of course only one-half the width of the inset spaces l2, and their cushioning posts l3 are only half-posts.

The portions of the sheet intervening between the several egg supports constitutes supporting For conareas for the bottom edges of a filler. venience of designation such portions of the sheet will be referred to as a filler supporting areas. These are distributed over the sheet in transverse and longitudinal rows l5 and I6.

Inasmuch as the individual egg supports H however are raised a substantial distance above the plane of the sheet, these filler supporting areas exist as definite channels which extend between the same at right angles to one another and in bisecting relation to the spaces l2 and I2.

Where the spaces l2 and I! are not depressed downwardly to form cushiong posts (see Figs. 6 and '7) the rows of filler supports l5 and it are not raised above, the plane of the sheet, but are co-planar therewith. In fact, with such arrangement said rows of filler supports and the intersected spaces l2 and i2 constitute the plane of the sheet.

Where the intersected spaces l2 and I2 however are'depressed downwardly (see Figs. 1 to 5) to form the cushioning feet l3 and I3, the bottoms H of said feet, terminate in the plane of the sheet and in fact constitute with the enclosing rim or border I! of the sheet the sheet plane and the rows of filler supports I5 and i6 are definitely elevated with respect both to said feet bot- [adequately to protect the eggs inserted in the rows of egg supports A and B these supports are desirably raised somewhat higher than they need I filler supports it and It a distance corresponding to the increase in height of the egg supports A and B, and hence the rows of elevated filler sup-' ports are no longer in the plane 01' the sheet but are above it, the plane of the sheet in such case being constituted by the enclosing rim or border I! and the bottoms ll of the cushioning posts I! and I3; and not by such rim and the enclosed spaces l2 and I! as is the case where our device is used asan ordinary fiat.

In. Fig. 8, we have shown six of our devices positioned in a conventional egg case or crate of standard dimension as packing for five layers of eggs E.

This increase in height of the egg sup- In this figure, the bottom wall of the case is indicated at I 8, the cover at I 9 and one of the vertical walls at 20.,

The bottom-most packing device, designated,

for convenience of reference in this figure by the letter C, is a combination flat and pad. Its

downwardly extending cushioning feet rest on the bottom wall l8 of the case, and the lowermost layer of eggs is inserted in its egg supports A and B, the individual eggs being separated from one another by the filler C. The lower edges of said filler are engaged by. the filler supports it and It. The upper edges of said filler bear against the underface of the packing device D layer of eggs.

Instead of using for the intermediate layers the flats designated D, E, F and G, we may use combination flats and lining pads like those designated C and H throughout the assembly.

Our invention therefore is both a new flat with re-arranged egg supports ll (Figs. 6 and '7) and a new combination fiat and pad (Figs. 1 to 5) embodying in addition to such re-arranged egg supports II the raised filler supports it and I O Y and the depending cushioning feet I! and I3 terminating at the plane of the sheet.

Various other modifications in structure and use may obviously be resorted to within the spirit and scope of our invention as defined by the appended'cla'ims.

What we therefore claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A packing sheet adapted to be nested with similar sheets, said sheet having distributed over one face thereof two sets of spaced rows of upstandingelongated article supports, the supports of the rows of one set having their major axes disposed in the same direction diagonally of the sheet, the supports of the rows of the other set also having their major axes disposed in the same direction diagonally of the sheet but intersecting the rows of the first set at right angles, the rows of the second named set occupying the spaces between the rows of the first named set, and the arrangement of said sets of rows in diago'nally intersecting relationship over the face of the sheet permitting the supports of either dicentral space being areasr? agonal set of rows of said sheet to be nested at random with the supports in either of the diago nal sets of rows oi a similar sheet.

2. The packing of claim 1, the supports being distributed in groups of four, each group consisting of a pair of oppositely disposed supports from two adjacent rows in one set and a pair of oppositely disposed supports from two adjacent rows in the other set, and the supports 01' each group occupying the four corners of a square and enclosing a central space.

3. A packing consisting of a sheet having on one face thereof iour upstanding elongated article supports occupying the. four corners of a square and enclosing a central space, one pair of supports being opposite each other and having their -major axes disposed in the same direction diagonally of the sheet and" the other support pair being opposite each other and having their major axes disposed in the same direction diagonally oi the sheet but at right angles to said first-named pair, the arrangement of said pairs of supports in diagonally intersecting relationship over the face the sheet permitting either diagonal pair oi supports to be nested at random with either diagonal pair oi supports of a similar sheet.

4. The packing sheet of claim 3, the enclosed oi line with the vertical axes of its enclosing article supports and terminates substantially flush with the plane of the sheet.

5. A packing, consisting of a sheet having on one face thereof two sets of spaced rows of elon-' 'rows, each row in ilrst set and each row depressed downwardly toform a hollow cushioning member which is out:

disposed in the same being distributed groups of four and the supports of each group occupying the four corners of a square and enclosing a central space, said spaces being extended downwardly to form cushioning members which are out or line with the vertical axes of their enclosing; article supports and the bottoms of which terminate substantially at the plane oi the sheet. a

6. The packing sheet oi claim 5, the sheet also having rows of raised portions extending transversely and longitudinally of the sheet at right angles to one another and spacing the adjacent groups of supports from one another and constituting supports for the lower edge of a superposed compartment i'ormingmember.

over the face of the sheet in 'z. A packing sheet adapted to be nested with Y similar sheets, said sheet having distributed over one face thereof a first set and a second set of upstanding elongated article supports arranged in the first set being disposed in relation to any other row in said in the second set being disposed in spaced parallel relation toany other row in the second set. each support in each row of each set being spaced apart from the adjacent supports in its row and all of the supports in all of the rows of the first set having their major axes disposed in the same direction diagonally oi the sheet andall oi the supports in'all oi the rows oi the second set having their major axes direction diagonally oi the sheet but at right angles to the rows of the first set, the rows 01 the second set occupying the spaces between therows oi the first set, and the arrangement or said'sets oi rows'in diagonally intersecting relationship over the face of the sheet permitting the supports of either diagonal set of rows of said sheet to be nested at random with the supports in either of the diagonal sets 0! rows of a similar sheet.

. DWIGHT S. BRIGHAM.

WALTER J. SCHWERTFEGER.

spaced parallel 

